Wow, I can’t believe 2019 is over! It flew by so fast but at the same time, so much has changed this year, it feels like January 2019 was a lifetime ago. This time last year, I was living in Japan. Actually, I was in Taiwan celebrating New Year’s but you get my point. In the past year, I pushed myself out of my comfort zone. I travelled around the world; majority of them on my own! I met really great people, made some amazing friends, packed up and left…
Author: hfunai1092@gmail.com
Instagram capital of the world (Bali, Indonesia)
I never knew much about Bali, except for that it’s beautiful and everyone was going. After 8 beautiful, exciting, and relaxing days in Phuket, I boarded an early morning flight to Bali. I had about a 5 hour layover in Singapore and even though I didn’t leave the airport, it felt so good to be back in Singapore! I think it’s one of my favorite countries I’ve been to… But I say that about every country I’ve been to. Unfortunately to get the best deal on airfare, my time in…
The friendliest place on earth (Phuket, Thailand)
When I was making plans for Phuket, there was one thing all the blogs had in common; food and island hopping. I figured, if I’m going to go island hopping, I should go one step further and go scuba diving. Two years ago, I went scuba diving in Okinawa and fell in love with it. So I figured, why not get certified! Even though I live in the midwest, getting certified was the best decision I ever made! i’m certified for the rest of my life and am only limited…
Around the world in 17 days
A couple months back, I decided once my contract in Japan ended, I was going to take time and travel around to various countries before heading home to Chicago. At first I thought maybe I will ask a friend to meet me on each leg of the trip. But the more I thought about it, the more a realized 1. who has the time off to do something like that 2. who has the money to meet me and 3. This would be a good opportunity to solo travel. This…
Closing time
I am 16 days away from 6th grade graduation, 18 days from closing ceremony, and 24 days away from saying goodbye to my teachers, students, and my life as I know it in Mito. It’s hard to believe it’s been almost three years since I left my life in America to start a new one in Japan. I’ve met so many people, made a lot of new friends, and have grown personally and spiritually in ways I never imagined. Edit: Post graduation and post closing ceremony. What a hard two…
Walking into Mordor (My trip to new zealand)
February is almost over which means spring is almost here!!! I escaped the cold for a week and went to my third new country of the year, New Zealand! For my friends who are Lord of the Rings fans (and even if you’re not one) I strongly recommend traveling to New Zealand. It’s far, but worth the trip! I was there towards the end of their summer (southern hemisphere) so the weather was perfect! With the exception of the first day, it was shorts and tank top weather the entire…
It’s Beginning to Look A Lot Like…
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year from Japan! The second term has finally come to a close which means, 3 more months until my time here in Mito is over! 😱 I would give anything to be at home this Christmas with family but instead, I’m at work because I didn’t want to use a vacation to take the day off. I’ve been in Japan long enough where working on Christmas doesn’t feel weird to me anymore. There are times I still find it sad and lonely, but…
A Trip Down Under
Another item has been checked off my bucket list! While most people were enjoying the Thanksgiving festivities at home or their home away from home, I took my celebrations down under to Australia! This country has been on my bucket list for as long as I could remember and it was worth the wait! I’ve been back in Japan for two weeks and I’m already planning my next trip down under. The weather was perfect, Sydney is an amazing city with so much to offer, and the people were so…
Too Hot to Function
This post was meant to be about my adventures in Chicago/ what I’ve been doing this summer in Japan. But as the title says; It’s too hot to function right now. Temps are in the upper 90s but it feels like 105 (at 9:30 in the morning). Dew point is 75, humidity is well over 50%. I’m so sticky a shower won’t even help me. “Summer” is coming to a close here. Which I’ve realized is really just saying the “3 months that are supposed to be summer but aren’t…
Tick.. Tock.. Tick.. Tock..
Even though it’s “summer break” at school, the teachers are still hard at work. I’m not exactly sure what they’re doing but they’re staying busy. What do I do at work? It’s pretty simple.. great even.. I. DO. NOTHING. It may sound great, but in reality it’s not. It took me a day to catch up and organize all my things from first term and it took me 15 minutes to get ready for the second term. Everyday I come in, make a plan of what needs to be done…